Six weeks before the start of the cricket World Cup, tournament organizers are rolling out a last-minute advertising blitz in the Caribbean to boost sagging ticket sales.
About half the seats for matches in the nine host countries are still available, and officials are rallying local fans to take up the slack once over-the-counter ticket sales begin on Thursday.
"It's going to depend on local support," chief ticketing officer Delroy Taylor said. "We're expecting the people of the Caribbean will come through in this last phase."
PHOTO: AFP
Not all venues are struggling -- hosts of later rounds are already turning fans away from some matches, including the final in Barbados.
But other countries, including Trinidad and Tobago and St. Kitts, are worried because they lack high-profile contests.
As many as 100,000 tourists are expected during the March 11 to April 28 tournament, and foreigners account for many of the tickets sold. When sales resume on Thursday after a two-month hiatus, organizers hope for a surge of sales to locals.
"In terms if our culture, we really are a last-minute people," said Roxanne Morris, commercial manager for the Jamaican organizing committee.
A lack of widespread Internet access may have prevented people in poor Caribbean nations from buying tickets earlier, Taylor said. Prices range from US$15 to US$90 for single matches in the group stage, and US$25 to US$100 for the Super 8 round.
Many hotels report cricket fans from overseas, particularly the UK, have snapped up all their vacancies. In the group stage, played in St. Kitts, Trinidad, St. Lucia and Jamaica, sales have been strongest for matches involving the home-team West Indies and power-houses like Australia and India. The top two clubs from each four-team group advance to the Super 8 round, set for Antigua, Grenada, Guyana and Barbados.
On the day of the final, Barbados expects 14 cruise ships to call on its port, with hundreds of yachts ferrying fans from nearby islands. Those without tickets can expect a carnival-like atmosphere with parties and big-screen televisions outside the stadium, said Terry Mayers, a spokesman for the Barbados organizing committee.
One key factor in locals' excitement, organizers say, will be the performance of the West Indies, which will seek its third championship since winning the first two World Cups in 1975 and 1979.
"We need for them to do well," Morris said. "If we can get that kind of positive energy, hopefully it will translate into a positive turnout."
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